The Next Step
by I.Am.Molly
Summary: Preparing for the next step in Leonard and Penny's life, serves as the catalyst for memories of the past and thoughts of their future. Lots of Lenny fluff, with a dash of sadness thrown in. :) enjoy!
1. Everything Has Changed

**You all have Terrible Waitress, and a slight obsession with Ed Sheeran to thank for this. Those of you following on twitter probably already know that, those of you that don't (WHY NOT?!) might not believe me if I told you this all started because that waitress wouldn't tell me her name. I used fanfiction as a bribe and now here I am. Time to give it up baby!**

**Aaanyway, this is a first for me in terms of style and content, but I hope you all enjoy it. I've certainly enjoyed writing it! The words in quotation marks are from a song called 'This' and the other title is the song that pretty much inspired the section after it. Those of you that are fans of Ed Sheeran should see how the lyrics inspired certain parts and those of you who don't, it doesn't matter, it will still make sense!**

**Okay, I think I've said all I have to say. Oh and don't leave without hitting that review button. It is like so totally awesome hearing from you guys. Totally. Awesome. :)**

* * *

**"This is the start of something beautiful."**

_Leonard stood in front of the sink in the bathroom of the hotel room, staring into the small mirror in front of him. His hair was loosely pushed back, his jaw cleanly shaven and his frowning eyes staring through recently polished glasses, focused on the uneven Dickie Bow tie around his neck. As he raised his hands to fix it, he realized those hands were shaking. His heart, thumping against his chest as his stomach swirled and churned within him. He was nervous. No, he was excited. Maybe a little scared, a little worried, but incredibly happy. Definitely happy, his heart swollen with love._

_"Oh my God! What have you done to your tie!?"_

_Leonard snapped his head to the left, where the door to the bathroom was located just a few feet away, to his suited up Indian friend, standing in the doorway; a scowl on his face and his hands on his hips._

_"I... uh…" Leonard stuttered, a little taken aback by his friends attitude. Although he knew he shouldn't have been. Raj had been stressing out just as much, if not more than him, all morning._

_"Here. I'll fix it, but don't mess with it again, this has to be perfect." Raj huffed and walked over to him, shaking his head and muttering something under his breath._

_Leonard stared at his friend as he worked on his tie, those words echoing in his mind. This was the most important day of his life so far, it was to become one of the happiest and most cherished days he would ever experience. A day he would remember forever, a day he had been waiting on and looking forward to since he had met her. It was going to be perfect. It had to be perfect and that was probably why he was so nervous, a little scared and worried._

_The pressure was terrifying. Everything they had planned – well, everything Raj, her and her bridesmaids had planned – was going to be put into action today. It could all go perfectly, or it could all go wrong._

_No, it wouldn't go wrong. He was marrying the woman of his dreams. He was vowing today to spend the rest of his life with her and she the same to him. There was no way this day could go anything other than perfectly._

_Yet his heart still thumped, his chest tightening, his stomach churning as nerves got the better of him._

_He saw Raj smile and step back, admiring his work on his tie before looking him over. That made him nervous too. "Perfect." He said with a nod and Leonard found himself relaxing just a little, until he spoke again, his brow furrowed with concern. "You look a little pale dude."_

_Leonard nodded, he wasn't surprised. "I think I'm going to be sick." He mumbled, his hand coming up to his stomach._

_"What? No!" Raj exclaimed as he reached out to him. "No, no, you can't be sick, you might get it on your tux!" Raj's panic only made Leonard freak out more and he began to breathe heavily, his face turning from sickly pale to flushed red as he tried in vain to catch his breath. Raj, beginning to panic just a little more, took Leonard's arm and pulled him towards the toilet to the right of the sink. "Okay. Come here, sit down." Raj shut the toilet lid and guided Leonard by his shoulders on to it. "Now, take some deep breaths." He said as calmly as possible. "Where's your inhaler?"_

_"Uh… um…" Leonard stuttered again, and Raj left, returning a few minutes later, inhaler in hand. "Thank… you." He said as he took it from his hand. Leonard gave the object a good shake then took a few breaths, feeling his chest begin to loosen and his breathing slowly return to some sort of normal state. "I should be okay now, Raj." He said with a nod to his friend who was still looking worriedly at him. "Just give me a few minutes."_

_Raj nodded and left, leaving Leonard sitting on the toilet, hands on his lap gripping his inhaler and his head resting against the wall. He closed his eyes, and breathed a few long, deep, calming breaths as he forced his mind away from the pressures of what today was. He stopped thinking of the fact that his and his soon-to-be wife's parents were meeting for the first time and the amount of trouble that could cause. He didn't think of the pictures that would be taken that had to be perfect and he didn't think about the speeches he would have to make and the dancing he would have to do in front of everyone._

_He thought about what today symbolised. Today was the beginning of the rest of their lives; their life together. He thought about how long it had taken them to get to this point and how thankful he was that they had actually gotten there. He had dreamt of this day for almost a decade, always hoping but never fully believing those dreams would ever really come true._

_He thought about the first day he met her and smiled. His body filling with all the feelings he had felt back then. If he tried really hard he could still hear the music that had been playing in her apartment that day._

_A day he would never forget._

_The day that everything in his life, began to change for the better._

* * *

**Everything Has Changed**

Leonard woke up with a smile on his face, his mind racing through the events of the day before. Thinking of all the things he knew today, that he hadn't known yesterday.

September 24th, 2007. It had started just like any other day, he had woken up at his usual time of half six, and drove himself and his best friend, Sheldon, to the University they both worked at. He had spent his morning around the laser equipment, the whiteboards with equations that very few people understood, just like usual. The sperm bank had been an unusual occurrence, but that wasn't how he was going to remember this day.

It was what happened as he was making his way home that would be forever engrained in his memory.

Leonard had climbed those four flights of stairs, with Sheldon yattering away as usual about the most random facts, or 'Factoids', as he liked to call them. According to him, if one step in a flight of stairs is even a millimetre higher than the one before it, most people would trip. It seemed unlikely, but then most of Sheldon Coopers 'Factoids' did. They were always fact though, that he could count on. He had wondered if he should try it. He was a scientist after all, it would only be right to perform an experiment to determine whether Sheldon's words were true. Maybe he could have used Sheldon as the test subject. He could somehow raise the height of every few steps in the staircase and walk behind as Sheldon walked up them and tripped, and he _would_ trip. Sheldon wasn't exactly the most coordinated of people at the best of times, throw in uneven stairs and the man would look like a drunken toddler trying to climb them.

Leonard had almost smiled at his own thought, until he heard his friend mutter some words about doing his own experiment on the subject, prompting him to ask if that was what had caused his parents to send him away, but it was just as his friend was answering his question, that he once again zoned out, although the reasoning for it was entirely different.

They had reached their floor, and the first thing to catch his attention was the upbeat, chirpy music being played off to the right. He frowned a little, he hadn't heard music come from this floor in a while - not since Louis/Louise had moved out - and then he saw her; flicking her blonde hair away from her face as she took her belongings out from one of the many boxes in her apartment. Her long shapely legs clearly showing under her short denim shorts that had been paired with a low cut turquoise blue top. He had looked her up and down, completely sure that he had never seen a woman that perfect in his entire life, and judging by those boxes, she was moving in across the hall from him. His heart rate sped up considerably. This perfect woman was going to be his neighbour. Definitely a significant improvement over the old one; a thought he had shared with Sheldon.

It was only when he had nervously walked in her direction, his friend in tow as they shared awkward hello's, that he noticed those shining green eyes and that smile; crooked, but perfectly showing off the gleaming white teeth behind it. The only reason it was awkward, he knew, was because of him. He was shy. He didn't know how to talk to women properly in general and certainly not ones as beautiful as her. It was almost intimidating, at first. She was out of his league, _way_ out, but she was so bubbly, so happy and carefree that it almost put him at ease.

Almost.

He still fidgeted, he still stuttered, and struggled to keep eye contact with her, but her beauty wasn't the kind that completely scared him off. She was gorgeous, of that he had no doubt, but something about her, something about her eyes and her smile, told him that she was a caring, loveable girl. It would almost be cliché to say she seemed like the 'girl next door type' and especially since she was actually moving in next door, but that was how she came across. She wasn't like many of the women he had met before, ones whose personalities didn't match their looks, at least it didn't seem like she was.

He still didn't know much about her now, except that she was from Nebraska, she had a jerk of an ex-boyfriend and she wanted to be an actress.

And that her name was Penny. It was such a simple name, for a simple small town girl and it suited her perfectly.

Leonard smiled as he got out of bed and put on his robe to head into the kitchen. It was a smile he had barely been able to wipe off his face since he had seen her.

He had been right about her personality too, something he had learned over their time in his apartment together and the time spent at dinner afterwards. She was just as sweet and bubbly as he had thought she was, more so even. It still surprised him that he had found the courage to ask her over for lunch with Sheldon and him, and had surprised him even more that she had accepted. He was glad though, ecstatic even.

The whole time she was in his apartment and all through dinner, he had found himself looking at her in awe. Butterflies forming in his stomach when her eyes met his, when she laughed or even when she simply smiled. He had found himself enamoured with her every movement. The way she dropped her head and tucked her hair behind her ears, the way she spoke with such enthusiasm and excitement. The way she looked at him with slight bewilderment and amusement, confused by what he and his friends were saying but too much of a sweetheart to tell them that. Instead she just smiled that puzzled smile and nodded along with a conversation she was lost in.

He could already feel himself becoming smitten by this Penny next door, although he was almost certain 'smitten' wasn't a strong enough word for how he felt.

Leonard smiled again, his heart skipping a beat at the mere thought of her name.

_Leonard and Penny_. His smile widened and those butterflies came back. It just sounded right. It _felt_ right.

"Leonard and Penny." He mumbled as he walked to his kitchen to get the coffee he needed to start his day. It felt good to say it.

He had met her only eighteen hours ago, spoken to her for only a few of those, and he already wanted to know more. He wanted to know everything. He wanted to know her birthday, her favourite colour, her favourite food. He wanted to know her surname and any middle ones if she had them. He wanted to get to know _her_. He wanted to know what made her tick, what excited her, what she loved and what she hated.

He wanted to know so he could give and do all those things for her, all the while making sure the things she hated stayed far away.

It was overwhelming, this feeling he had. He was sure he had never experienced anything like it before.

His life was somewhat sheltered, some would say lonely. Yes, he had his friends and he cared deeply for them but he had never experienced true love. The sad, blue walls around his heart had never been broken down, no one had wanted in; despite how willingly he would open the door to his heart, especially to someone like her. He had never felt the emptiness of that more than now. Now that he was beginning to realize just what he had been missing out on his whole life.

He wondered if Penny had felt what he had felt yesterday whenever she had given him those butterflies and caused his heart to skip a beat. He wondered if she felt what could only be described as a spark when their eyes met or they innocently brushed against one another.

She probably didn't. Girls like her didn't feel things like that for guys like him, but he wanted her to. He wanted to be hers, and he wanted her to be his. He wanted those smart and beautiful children he had mentioned. He wanted to prove Sheldon wrong. He wanted to invite her into his world, he wanted her to continue to make him feel things that he hadn't felt before; feelings that he had missed out on because of that sheltered lifestyle, where games, comics and figurines had filled the space in his heart. A space he would gladly free up for her.

But maybe she _had_ felt it. Maybe when their eyes had locked as he stood in that hallway, she had felt the same electricity flow through her body as he had. He thought it almost impossible that she hadn't. It had been so strong and maybe he was being, at best, hopeful, but he was sure he had seen that spark in her eyes as she spoke to him. One he was certain that she hadn't given Sheldon, Raj or Howard.

A gentle knock on the door pulled him from his thoughts of the day before, although that smile stayed glued to his face.

He didn't even take the time to wonder who was at his door so early, if he had he might have been less shocked and maybe a little more prepared when the green eyed, blonde he had been thinking about, the one who had unknowingly changed both of their lives just by moving in, met his eyes.

But he didn't wonder. He just shuffled to the door, a smile on his face, coffee cup in hand and his socks patting against the hardwood floors. Once he was only a few steps away he heard those two soft knocks again.

* * *

_And again._

_Leonard opened his eyes and took in a sharp breath; the sound in his day dream becoming reality._

_"Leonard! It's almost time, we gotta start getting ready to leave." Howard's voice shouted from behind the door._

_"Uh… yeah." He replied, shaking his head a little, "I'm coming."_

_After taking another breath from his inhaler, he put it into his pocket, certain that it wouldn't be the last time he would need to use it today. He stood up and took one last look at himself in the mirror as he smoothed over his hair and patted down his tuxedo jacket. He was so different to how he was back then, and so was she, but in many ways they were still exactly the same._

_They were still Leonard and Penny. He still got those butterflies from just looking at her or hearing their names said together and after today, just like it had back then, everything was going to change._

_After today, this beautiful, perfect day, they would be Leonard and Penny Hofstadter._


	2. Sofa

**Well, im glad you all seem to be enjoying this! You may be happy to know, or you might not care less, but she told me her name. :) I wrote a fic to hear someones name and you know what, it was worth it! Now, chapter 2! Enjoy the fluffiness guys, it wont be here for too much longer!**

* * *

"_**This is the start of something new"**_

_Penny sat in front of the huge dressing table, wearing a pink vest top and her long pyjama bottoms, unable to wipe the smile off her face as she saw the commotion going on around her. Holding a fresh cup of coffee in her hands as her hairdresser, Sophie, worked her magic on her long golden blonde hair, she found herself looking upon her room through the huge mirror in front of her. Along the wall opposite to the one her dressing table was on, lay two beds; one single, that Bernadette had spent the night in, and one double, that she had shared, through no choice of her own, with her Maid of Honour and self-proclaimed bestie, Amy._

_Spread out across that double bed was a white silk dress cover, holding inside it her beautiful white wedding dress. She had spent days on end searching for it with her girls, before she finally found the one that she wanted to walk down the aisle in. Penny had found herself unconsciously staring at that dress cover on her bed for most of the morning, unable to stop the butterflies of excitement - or maybe even nerves - from spreading through her body. _

_She couldn't wait to wear it. She couldn't wait for Leonard to finally see her in the dress she had chosen as much for him as herself. She could almost picture his face beaming with happiness as she walked down the aisle, and he would call her a princess or an angel when she finally reached him. She knew he would and not because she thought that herself, but because she knew it was how he saw her. _

_Penny smiled and took a sip of her drink, her attention moving from her dress and over to her friends and family, all rushing around the room trying to find everything from hair clips, to make-up. She was sure she had even heard Amy exclaim that she had lost her shoe. _

_Amy was, of course, already wearing her tiara, even although she was still in her dressing gown. Her hair hadn't even been done either, yet she instisted on wearing it for as much of the day as possible. Bernadette was in the bathroom, doing her make-up Penny presumed, as she couldn't really see her as much as she could hear her, yelling at Amy or anyone that would listen to get her bag, her phone or whatever else it was she needed that she couldn't leave the mirror to get herself. Penny knew why she was refusing to leave that mirror too. There were a total of six women going in and out of this and the adjoining room that had been used by Penny's mother and sister, but there were only two mirrors to share between them, excluding the dressing table that was to be used by the bride only. Those mirrors were not to be left unattended for too long, because as soon as they were another one of the girls would swoop in and take it from whoever was using it. Penny found this funny as she sat there, but she knew for everyone else in the room it was highly frustrating._

_Surprisingly, both to herself and the rest of the bridal party, Penny was much calmer than everyone else. She certainly hadn't been this relaxed in the build-up to today, but now that it was here, she found herself feeling more content than she had in a while. What was done was done. There was nothing she could do now to change how today went, it was all in the hands of the separate people and the jobs Penny had assigned them too, to make sure today went off without a hitch, and even if it didn't it didn't really matter. Even if the cars didn't turn up on time, even if the photographer went to the wrong church or the caterer cooked the wrong food, today she was still marrying the man of her dreams. The rest of it was trivial and unimportant compared to that. She still had a few tingling nerves, though they were massively overpowered with excitement._

_The fact that she had nothing to do besides sit there, helped too. She had her hairdresser to worry about making sure her hair was perfect, she had her sister, who had studied beauty therapy for a couple of years even although nothing came of it, to do her make-up. All she had to do was get herself into her dress, and even then she knew she would have all those girls around her as she done that too. _

_Penny grinned, hearing the stressed out voices of her friends and family as she continued to drink her coffee while Sophie worked her hair into long soft waves, and clipped a few strands back away from her face. _

"_So Penny," Penny's sister said as she sat down on the bottom of the single bed, looking towards her. "Are you nervous?"_

_Penny smiled and looked at her sister through the mirror, "Not really. I'm more excited than nervous." She said with a casual shrug. _

_"Really? I was a nervous wreck before I got married."_

_"Yeah?" Penny asked with a small smile, "Was that the first or second time?"_

_"Both actually." She replied with a glare, before giving a small smile in return. "But who knows, maybe i'll be more relaxed on my third." She joked and b__oth girls laughed for a few seconds until their attention was diverted, as their curvy mother, still in her dressing gown, entered their room from the conjoining door beside the single bed, dabbing her eyes with tissue and sobbing. "Oh my god!" She tearfully exclaimed as she waved her hand in front of her face. "I can't believe my little baby's getting married today!"_

_Penny simply smiled and rolled her eyes as she saw her make her way to the bathroom, hearing Bernadette moan as her mother took over the mirror she was using. It was the third time this morning her mother had gotten emotional, and she just knew it wouldn't be the last. _

"_You are dealing with this craziness pretty well Penny." Sophie the hairdresser mumbled, a couple of hair clips hanging out of her mouth, "I've seen so many brides that would have freaked out by now." _

_Penny shrugged and put her coffee on the dressing table, pulling her legs up to cross them in front of her as she looked at Sophie through the mirror. "Yeah, I'm kinda surprised that I'm so calm. Maybe it just hasn't really sunk in yet… I don't know."_

"_It hasn't sunk in?" Sophie asked with a laugh. "Honey, I hate to break it to you but you're getting married in a couple of hours! I think it's about time it sunk in!" _

_Penny smiled. "Yeah I know!" She laughed, "I guess I just don't see much to freak out over right now." She shrugged, "I've got all of you guys helping me do everything and get ready so I'm pretty relaxed about it all." _

_A moment later Penny's mother left the bathroom again, her eyes still puffy and red as she dabbed them with toilet paper. "You okay mom?" Penny asked as her mother sniffled._

"_I'm fine sweetheart. This is just so emotional!" She said as she walked over to stand beside Penny, putting on hand on her jaw, forcing her to look up at her. "I just can't believe your getting married. It feels like just yesterday I was pushing you around in a stroller..." She smiled and let out a soft sigh, "I'm so proud of you." She said for the first time that day Penny felt her eyes swell with tears._

"_Jeez mom," Penny's sister said, rolling her eyes, "You weren't this emotional at my weddings!"_

_Her mother nodded as she took her hand away from Penny's face and turned around to face her sister, "Sweetie, I love you, but your choice of men is terrible. Your sister is marrying a doctor, a good man with a good heart, the same cannot be said for your unfaithful ex and your dope dealer of a husband."_

_Her sisters jaw dropped,_ "_He's not a-"_

_Penny's mom held up one finger and her daughter instantly stopped talking, "We both know what you are about to say is a lie, so lets stop now and keep this day focused on your sister."_

_Penny's sister once again rolled her eyes as she crossed her legs and scoffed. "Fine... But hes not even a real doctor." She said under her breath._

"_Closer to a doctor than you've ever gotten." Penny snapped back with narrow eyes._

_There was a few moments of uncomfortable silence as each of the three bickering women kept quiet. This always happened when she was around her family for too long, her father usually being the one to step in and stop any squabbles before they escalated and she had hoped that it wouldn't happen today. The three women were usually incredibly stubborn and it would often take a while for them to forget about whatever they had been arguing about, but today each one of them let go of that stubbornness just a bit, throwing each other apologetic looks and shy smiles._

"_I know, let's put some music or the television on." Penny's sister said as she stood up from the bed and headed over to the small TV set across the room. "It might help to keep the mood nice and light in here." She smiled as she glanced toward Penny, before flicking through the channels._

_Penny watched her through the mirror, until she came on to something that interested her. "Oh! Stop there. 'Friends' is on. That's always good."_

_Her sister nodded and left the television to go into her own room, preumably to go and start getting ready, and Penny smiled as she noticed which episode it was that was playing. It wasn't a very important one in terms of the show, but to her it was, because she remembered that it was the first one that Leonard had ever watched. Ever. And he had watched it with her, years ago now, but as that screen played the same scenes that they had watched together all that time ago, it felt like it had only just happened yesterday._

**Sofa**

Penny was sitting on her sofa, struggling to get comfortable as the sling around her dislocated shoulder and the pain she still felt from it, stopped her from relaxing in the way she normally would have. She shifted her weight into different positions several times, before letting out a frustrated growl, throwing her head back against the sofa as she tried her hardest not to cry tears of sympathy for herself and cursed herself for not having any of those stupid adhesive ducks Sheldon was yattering on about. She would definitely have to remember to get those. There was no way she was going through this again.

After another few minutes of struggling, Penny finally found herself in a semi comfortable position with both of her legs up on the coffee table, her left arm resting on the armrest. Once she had resigned herself to the fact that she wasn't going to get any more comfortable than she was, she began to concentrate on the television in the hope it would take her mind away from the pain that was beginning to worsen as her painkillers wore off.

It didn't work however, and Penny squirmed as the thought of getting up to retrieve her pills from the kitchen made her stomach sink, but the thought of dealing with the pain was even more unappealing. Penny turned her head towards the kitchen, trying to bring herself to get up off the sofa, until a knock on her door made her swing her head around. After waiting a few seconds for the extra knocks and her name that didn't come, replaced instead with Leonard's voice telling her it was him, she smiled and yelled, "It's open."

"Hey honey." Leonard sympathetically said as he walked over to her and placed a hand on top of her head as he bent down to give her a quick kiss. "How's your arm?"

"It's okay." She mumbled.

"Look what I got you." He said with a smile as he sat down on the sofa beside her and held up a small bag. Penny looked curiously at him, and he proceeded to pull out a pack of duck shaped 'Non-slip Bath Stickers', just like the ones he had in his tub.

Narrowing her eyes and glaring at him, she sarcastically said, "Ha ha, very funny Leonard." Rolling her eyes, she gave him a quick, small smile, and then grimaced as the pain in her shoulder hit again and she lay her head back.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked with concern as he reached out and touched her leg.

Penny gave her best attempt at a nod, "Can you just get me my painkillers from the kitchen please?"

Leonard smiled, "Sure." He replied with a nod as he stood up and got her pills and a glass of water before handing them to her and taking his bag of ducks stickers with him into the bathroom.

A few minutes later he returned, a huge smile on his face. "Your bathtub is now a no slip zone!" He chuckled, "No more dislocated shoulder's for you!"

All Penny could do was give him a small smile in thanks.

"Are you sure your okay lying there?" Leonard asked, his expression turning concerned once again. "Why don't we go into my apartment and you can spread out over my sofa."

Penny considered this for a few moments. On one hand, she really didn't want to go through the effort of moving, however she knew that Leonard's sofa was much more comfortable than hers and big enough for the both of them to lie down together on. Of course, there was that added problem of Sheldon.

"Sheldon's out, so we will have the place to ourselves." He added, like he had read her mind.

A smile spread across her face as she cautiously sat up, "Okay. Let's go to yours."

Leonard walked over to her and took her good hand to help her stand up before walking her across the hall with him.

As soon as they were inside Penny headed for the sofa, grabbing the scattered pillows and putting them on Sheldon's spot as she carefully lay on her left side, her legs able to comfortably stretch out in a way they just couldn't in her own apartment.

"Come lie down with me, Leonard." Penny pouted as he moved around his apartment, turning on the television and going to the fridge to collect bottles of water for them both.

"I will in a minute. I just have to get something first." He replied as he sat the water on the table and headed off down the hall.

When he returned a few minutes later he had his blue snuggie in hand, a sight that made Penny smile. She often forgot that she had given him it, so it was always nice when she was reminded of it at times like this. "Here, let's get you all snuggled up." He said as he threw the blanket over her.

In that moment she was unable to take her eyes off of him, grinning as he tucked the blanket around her. She hadn't been his girlfriend for very long, and each day she was seeing things in him that she truly adored. This was particularly enjoyable; the way he was fussing over her. For a split second she wondered if any of her ex-boyfriends would have been this attentive had this happened to her when she was with them. She quickly came to the conclusion though, that they wouldn't.

"What?" Leonard asked her, a frown on his face. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Penny let out a quiet laugh, "No reason sweetie. Come, sit down."

Leonard nodded, although he seemed unconvinced, and lifted up her legs, before sitting down in the middle of the sofa and placing her legs back over him.

"What are you doing?"

"Sitting down." Leonard replied with a confused frown.

"Yeah," She rolled her eyes, "I know _that_, but why over there? Lie down here, with me."

"Oh." He chuckled, "Okay."

Penny grinned as she watched him take off his jacket and hoodie, so he would be more comfortable she assumed, then manoeuvre himself beside her, putting one arm under the pillow her head was on and carefully placing his right arm on her waist, tucking his legs in behind hers and wrapping the snuggie over them.

"There, how's that?" He asked.

Penny just continued to smile as she leant back into him and closed her eyes. "Hmm… better." It really was. There was always something serene about being in his arms. It almost made her wish she hadn't waited until he came back from the North Pole to tell him how she felt about him. She should have told him as soon as she realized those feelings were there; after that wonderful night when his mother had come to visit. Sure, it had been the alcohol that had made her so promiscuous and forward, but all the alcohol was doing was drunkenly playing out the sober thoughts she had been having.

"You will have to get the remote. I can't reach." Leonard said, breaking her from her peaceful thoughts.

"I can't get it," She replied, moving her sling as best as she could, "Remember, dislocared shoulder." She laughed, "We will have to just leave it here."

"Fine." He said with a sigh, obviously not impressed with watching whatever it was that was on the screen, before snuggling his head down into the pillow as he pushed his nose into her neck. She was sure at that moment she felt him smell her hair. She was certain he had, he almost always done it.

The two of them lay like that for a while, barely saying more than a word to each other as they struggled to keep their eyes open. Even although it had just gone five in the afternoon, their warm embrace had relaxed them almost to the point of sleep. She was sure that Leonard's late night camping the evening before had attributed to his tiredness too though. Penny however had managed to stay more awake than him, watching whatever it was the television had to offer to pass the time.

"Leonard?" Penny said quietly almost an hour later, as she gently squeezed his hand.

"Yeah?" He grumbled back, barely even awake.

"Have you ever been on vacation abroad? Like visited any other countries?"

"Mmh. No." He replied as he shifted his weight a little, "Well, except from the North Pole, but that wasn't really a vacation, it was work… Have you?"

"No." She turned her head around slightly so she could see him, "You know what we should do? We should go somewhere together."

"We should?" He asked, opening his eyes a little and raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah." She smiled. "This travelling programme was just on and they went to like, Berlin and Tokyo and Jamaica... They all looked so nice. OH!" She said excitedly as she turned to lie on her back, her dislocated shoulder pressing into the sofa, but she didn't notice the pain through a mixture of good painkillers and her excitement. "We could go to Rome! Or Rio!" She gasped, her eyes sparkling, "Or _Paris_."

Leonard chuckled, "Yeah, I guess we could."

Penny smiled and nodded, "Or, you know, we don't even have to go out of the country." She quietly added as she pushed her forehead on to his, her left hand on his side, playing with the material of his t-shirt. "We could go to New York, or head down to Vegas. We could even just go for the weekend."

Leonard nodded and closed his eyes as he tightened his grip around her, "I'll take you wherever you want to go honey…" He opened his eyes again, locking them on to hers and smiled. "But I'd rather stay here on the sofa with you, for now."

Penny grinned as she moved her good hand to gently stroke his cheek, gently nodding as his eyes closed again, she agreed with him. There was nowhere else she would rather be right now than here with him. The only thing she wished was that she hadn't slipped in her tub the day before so her arm wasn't restricted in a sling, and that he hadn't been up most the evening before, causing him to be so tired right now.

Suddenly, Penny frowned as her mind considered something it hadn't before. "Leonard, where is Sheldon and the guys?" She asked. It was a very rare occurrence that Sheldon would go somewhere without Leonard, mainly because he often acted as his chauffer.

Leonard opened his eyes. "They went to the comic book store and then I think they are going to the cinema. I don't know, it depends how long the guys can put up with Sheldon on their own. They tend to get more annoyed with him when I'm not around." He chuckled.

"Why didn't you go?"

Leonard gave a small smile and shrugged. "I told you, I'd rather stay here with you." He blushed. "Maybe if you hadn't hurt yourself I would have gone, but you're injured." He smiled, "You need someone to look after you."

Penny smiled although she was a little shocked. Part of her wanted to tell him should have gone, but she was really glad that he hadn't. She enjoyed these moments when it was just the two of them, with no Sheldon in sight to complain about their public displays of affection or offering his input into everything they talked about.

"You are so sweet." She said quietly, using her thumb to gently stroke his cheek as she leaned in to kiss him softly on the lips. "I promise I'll make it worth your while." She whispered, even although there was no one around to hear them, and he instantly smiled and kissed her again.

Their moment was interrupted however, by the sound of an all too familiar sitcom starting. Well, familiar to Penny anyway. "Oh, Friends is on!" She said, turning her head to look at the screen. "Finally there's something worth watching on this channel." She said as she turned body around, getting back into the position they were in only a few minutes ago, pushing herself as close to him as possible as they resembled spoons on his sofa. Their legs entangled together, her left hand, holding tightly on to his right.

"What is this programme?" Leonard asked.

Penny snapped her head around. "Are you serious!? You've never watched Friends before?" She asked in shock and he shook his head. "What!? Have you been living under a rock for the past ten years?!" Leonard simply looked at her and she smiled. "You will like it, it's funny." She turned again, facing the television as she felt Leonard snuggle his head back into her hair and normally she would have let him stay like that and fall asleep, but not today. "Nuh uh, Hofstadter!" She said as she pushed back into him and squeezed his hand. "Don't fall asleep. I don't care if you were up all last night getting high," She laughed. "You need to watch this. No-one is allowed to go their lifetime without watching Friends as least once!"

* * *

_Penny came back to reality as the theme tune on the screen played again, signalling the end of the show and she sat for a few more moments with a small smile glued to her face, her eyes still glazed over in thought._

"_What are you thinking about Penny?" Amy asked as she stood beside the bathroom door, probably still waiting on Bernadette to finish up with the mirror._

_Penny didn't even think before giving an answer, she just gave a barely audible sigh and continued to smile. "Leonard."_

_Her answer was met with instant 'aww's' from around the room, and it was those 'aww's' that made her blush and clear her throat as she realized what she had said. _

_She wasn't sure what happened at that moment, but suddenly she felt herself awash with emotion. Leonard had always done his best to make sure she was happy. Ever since the day they had met he had put her first, before everyone else and although now there were times when he would pick going with his friends rather than stay in with her, she knew if she asked it, or if she was sick, or sad, or injured, he would be at her side in a moment. In that moment she promised herself she would always do the same for him, even although deep down she knew she already done it. He always came first and no more so than now._

"_That is so sweet, Penny." Amy said as she held her hand to her heart and tilted her head, her eyes watering over just a little._

"_Amy, don't." Penny replied, "Don't you start getting emotional too!" She said, trying to laugh but somehow it managed to come out more tearful than she had expected. _

"_Oh my baby!" Penny's mother cooed as she rushed over and put her arms around her daughter, pulling her into a tight hug. _

_"Mom, be careful; my hair!" Penny laughed again as her mom squeezed her but just as before it came out in sobs. "I don't even know why I'm getting upset!" _

_Her mom pulled back and smiled, "You're not upset sweetie." She said as she wiped the few tears flowing down Penny's cheeks, before holding her by the cheek. "You're happy."_


End file.
